Eighty seniors graduate from CWCHS

Thursday

May 23, 2013 at 5:00 PM

A total of 80 seniors made up the Class of 2013 at Carmi-White County High School during commencement ceremonies Tuesday, May 21. The 99th annual event was held in MacDougal-Evers gymnasium to a packed house.

Tammy Knox

A total of 80 seniors made up the Class of 2013 at Carmi-White County High School during commencement ceremonies Tuesday, May 21. The 99th annual event was held in MacDougal-Evers gymnasium to a packed house.

Principal Jarrod Newell began the introduction of the Class of 2013 following the processional into the gym to the music of "Pomp and Circumstance," which was provided by Carmi-White County High School's band under the direction of Ryan Preci, music director. Newell introduced members of the Unit 5 School Board, including President James Cutchin, Vice President Tom Scates, Secretary Richard Kuykendall and board members David Bachman, Kelli Chapman, Kevin Hammell and Keith Hoskins. Superintendent Brad Lee was also recognized along with Dr. Amy Dixon, director of instruction, and Amy Atteberry, assistant principal at CWCHS.

Four classmates earned status as valedictorian for the group, and each were tasked with delivering a portion of the speeches for the evening.

Drew Brown began with a welcome that had a slight delay as the sound system was exchanged. Brown, who plans to attend University of Southern Indiana (USI) and major in exercise science, noted the accomplishments of the class and also that "56 percent of us plan to take over SIC."

Superintendent Lee followed with a welcome to the crowd and provided some advice to the class, giving them three things to focus on as they venture into a new phase of their lives. He said to work hard, be a giver, not a taker and to not sweat the small stuff, making a comical reference to the issues with the audio system to begin the program. Lee ended his portion of the program with, "Let the future be yours."

Assistant Principal Atteberry, assistant principal at CWCHS, provided recognition of seniors who excelled academically, maintaining an "A" average of 3.6 to 4.0. She also awarded the salutatorian award to Dylan Rankin, who plans to attend USI for pre-med.

Valedictorians Colin Winter and Lukas Matsel then came forward to provide a look at the history of the Class of 2013. Winter, who is headed to University of Illinois in the fall, reviewed the group's years from kindergarten through eighth grade before Matsel, who has plans to attend USI for exercise science, took over the microphone. He reviewed the four years of high school for the class and ended with a statement that summed up their experience at CWCHS.

"We have represented the school, the community and our parents with a great deal of pride," said Matsel. "Our lives will undergo major changes as it's time for us to move on."

Matsel also threw in some humor, noting it was time to move on before the school did something like, "change the name of the school and let the middle schoolers in or something like that."

Matsel ended with a simple statement, "Thanks for the memories and good luck."

Principal Newell returned to the podium to certify the students had successfully completed the course to receive their high school diploma. Newell then began to announce each graduate, who walked across the floor to receive his or her diploma from President Cutchin. Bachman assisted Cutchin in the presentations, and stepped in to provide the honor to Emma Bachman, his daughter, when she walked across the staging area.

When the final diploma was presented to Natasha Sue Youngman, the final valedictorian Bryan Pollard approached the staging area for some final words for the class. Pollard is headed to Earlham College to study physics.

Pollard, Brown, Winter and Matsel had exceptional grades while attending CWCHS. They each earned valedictorian status for the class by receiving all "A's" the entire four years at the school.

After being announced as graduates, the Class of 2013, consisting of 39 boys and 41 girls, moved their tassels from left to right on their caps and exited the gymnasium, guided by Mackenzie Armstrong and Cassie Mick, who served as marshals for the ceremony. The girls joined eight ushers for the event as the top 10 students in the junior class. Students serving as ushers included Sean Courty, Samantha Murphy, Jamey Steed, Rachel Fleming, Macy Pesavento, Seth Gross, Chase Sailer and Bailey Winters.

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